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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bat — the animal
  4. drill — the tool
  5. drill — army training
  6. drill — a practice
  7. capital — money
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. clip — a video
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. prune — to trim
  13. clip — to cut
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. clip — for paper
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. plane — a tool
  18. capital — a city

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com